Crossover bridge and operating mechanism



Sept. 22, 1953 A. w. SKINNER 2,652,783

--eaossoyzg BRIDGQAND OPERATING MECHANISM Filed June 2, 1949 9 Sheet-Sheet 1 1m u Mm IN TOR. Asa W. inner ATTOQRNEY l 1953' A. w. SKINNER 2,652,783

CROSSOVER BRIDGE AND OPERATING MECHANISM v Filed June 2, 1949 9 Sheets- Sheet 2 n. I I.

FIG.- 3

INVENTOR.

Asa W. Skinner p 1953 I A. w. SKINNER 2,652,783

CROSSOVER BRIDGE AND OPERATING MECHANISM Filed June 2, 1949 9 Sheets-Sheet 3 ne 5 INVENTOR.

' Asa W. Skinner ATTORN Sept. 22, 1953 A. w. SKINNER 2,552,733

CROSSOVER BRIDGE AND OPERATING MECHANISM Filed June 2, 1949 9 Sheets-Sheet 4 FiG.-6

INVEN TOR. Asq W. Skinner AT TQR EY Sept. 22, 1953 A. w. SKINNER 2,652,783

CROSSOVER BRIDGE AND OPERATING MECHANISM iled June 2, 1949 I esheets-sheet 5' JNVENTOR. Asa W. Skinner Sept. 22, 1953 A. w. SKINNER CROSSOVER BRIDGE AND OPERATING MECHANISM 9 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed June 2, 1949 Fla-lo INVENTOR. Asa W. Skinner P 1953 A. w. SKINNER 2,652,783

CROSSOVER BRIDGE AND OPERATING MECHANISM Filed June 2, 1949 9 Sheets-Sheet 7 JNVENTOR. Asa W. Skinner 'ATTOR Sept. 22, 1953 A. w. SKlNNER CROSSOVER BRIDGE AND OPERATING MECHANISM Filed June 2, 1949 9 Sheets-Sheet 8 A. W. SKINNER CROSSOVER BRIDGE AND OPERATING MECHANISM Sept. 22, 1953 9 Sheets-Sheet 9 Filed June 2, 1949 FiGs M INVENTOR. Ase W. Skinner Patented Sept. 22, 1953 QFFICE cS nenRim 1L,v

atiog, Harvey; It},

ass ignoreto. White- Application lune 2 1949, ser mo. some I M r e ticnis irec ed a c1:

Forthe purposes:of'illustration, ltshal 1 52 1113? my. invention as applied? to. a diesel looomo-t re repair-shop where it islparticularly useful, but it should beiinderstoode that mybridge-is; adaptable ion-other uses. Diesel locomotive repair shops are frequently: constructed with. spaced parallel piers rising,- abovev the. ground? floor to; support the railway track upon which the locomotive moves. On either -sideof the tracks are decks. elevated' above the ground fioor and above the tracks a distanice sufilcientto place them, in the same plane asthe: fioor of thev locomotive. IJhe decks therefore define elongated: bays: in which the tracks run and: in which thelocomotiveior other vehicle is positioned for service. While this, type qg building arrangement;- is: highly. efiicierit in many respects; it seriously impedesthe efiicient transfenofmen and materials" in. a. direction transverse to on across the bays, since the elevated tracks with theinpiersnormally: block pass. sage onthe ground; level and the bays themselvesconstitute an obstacle atdeck level.

While a principal object of my invention is to provide a bridge together with suitable operat-inlg. mechanism for raising; andlowering the bridge to span gaps and interruptions atdiiferent levels; an e'tl ier important; object includes the provis n jof acrossoverbridge which in lowered pos royidesfa passage for a heavyvehicleat a pre "nedlevel, anol when raised permits passa v a transverse direction at a difi-erent v t Qtheg-primaryobjects otm-yinvention include the provision-of acrossover' bridge which is pars larly adapted for use in diesel locomotive res, shops for providing passage inone direction to 7 a locomotive at traekleveland, when moved her-position, for'pi ovidingi transverse pas sage ar men and materials at other levels, and which is I coordinated with the building structure to prevent accidental displacement or undue strain upon the bridge operating mechanism or the support members.

Fur-ther important objects of: my invention will be found: in the various; novel components em.,. ployed, and in variouscombinations and arran e: ments; oi such comp nents. as will be need. in thefol'lotina deta led de cript on a d; these: pendea drawnala w F a-L ial r perspective 9i. m' rie F g.v 6: s; sart a la roken: a ay si ele tion. of my; struct 7; isl art a QIQfi s ction. l t v a orp s dev ce;

Fig, 10 is apa tial e erationqtanother fo m; n na cle. as;

'1 is alplanv ew of; theor re; mecha sm for my bridge;

Fig. 121s; a part ally; sect onal: par i ele ion of a modified for-m or my invention;

Fi 35 .5 apartial planview of hede i e s wn in Fig. 12; with a portion: of the coyer-platebroken away toshow the operatin mechanism;

Fig. 14 is avplan, view: of one; Of: the supports shown in Figs. 12 and 13;

Fig. 15 isa perspective View showing a modified form. of." bridge in operation; and,

1 Fig. 16 is a partial. perspective. illustrating another modified form of my bridge.

In brief; bridge. is intended for use over a pit which houses the-.briclge-operating mecharlism and which is disposed; for example, in an interruption in rail supporting piers disposed" between elevated decks. Thebridgeinc1udes a platform having flush-mounted rail sections fixed thereto for aligrilnent with a railWay-trackand a floor-plate level with the rail surfaces, Threaded support members are fixed to; the under side of" the platform and engage rotatable nuts" dis} posed in the pit-Q The nuts are connected through a w rmise mec anism to a s t bl r ersible Q 9. 1 m Qra in h d' type rr rnsv-a tuat v rake W e i n es ary "to move a loco otive or the'lile alon the tracks, he b idge is owered. y' peratio f he mar 1 he, pl tform: en ages ahutm nts fix to ends of. the ai rsl l hs' ie s, These abmments ease t pl nt M an ix s past tion both vertically andlatera y, i such, m nn r t at disp acemen of h slat orm unde t w ght or t act efiort ofv a! lo omot v s vi tually imrwssiizl cv when th lo omotive has passed: t ematm gimar be r ised. o d cklevt thus pann ng he, bay and ex osin a pla e 3 covering the pit at ground fioor level, which also forms a passageway across the tracks.

The general arrangement of my device is best shown in Figs. 1 and 2 wherein I have illustrat ed a portion of a diesel locomotive repair shop including spaced, generally parallel, longitudinally extending decks l supported by pillars 5! above a ground floor l2 at approximately locomotive fioor level. In a bay l3, defined by the spaced decks It, are elevated piers l4 upon which railway rails 16 are mounted defining a railway track. This type of structure is desirable since the use of elevated railway tracks provides suificient head room for men working on the ground floor 12 below the decks Ill. The piers i4 and tracks l6 are interrupted, as at H, for the installation of my bridge, generally designated I8.

To house the operating mechanism for my bridge I provide a pit I9 of suitable configuration, such as that illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5, in the interruption H, the pit being covered by a plate 2! supported at ground floor level. Four spaced support members 22 having heavy external threads engage the under side of a platform 23 near its corners, and extend downwardly through the plate 2! into relatively deep holes the latter extending downwardly beyond the floor of the pit i9. The members 22 support the bridge [8 when it is in raised position at deck level, and also serve to raise and lower the platform 23 at a predetermined speed, but do not contribute materially to the support of the platform 23 when the latter is in lowered position.

The platform 23 may, as indicated in Fig. 1, be of somewhat greater width than the bay [3, the decks it! being cut away immediately above the bridge as necessary to permit registry between th upper surface of the platform 23 and the decks l9. Although many types of struc ture may be employed, the platform may suitably be formed by properly connecting a plurality of I-beams 24 to receive rail sections 26, which are spaced and disposed for registry with the railway track It when the platform 23 is in lowered position. A floor 2'! is also mounted on the I-beam 24 flush with the top of the rail sections 28 and is cut away as necessary to permit the passage of a railway vehicle along the rail sections.

Four supporting abutments 28, shown more clearly in Fig. 5, are firmly anchored to the ends of the piers id at the interruption l1, and are spaced downwardly from the rails it in position to support the platform 23 with the rail sections 26 in alignment with the track 15. Each of the abutments may include a T-shaped su port 29 on the upper surface of which is mounted an angle member 3! positioned to receive and support the platform 23. Considerable care should be employed in fixing the position of these angle members 3!, since they must engage the bottom and sides of the platform 23 smoothly and firmly to insure against displacement of the platform by a locomotive. If desired, sections of the I-beams 24 may be cut away or other suitable receivers provided on the platform 23 for engagement with the angle members 3| in such manner as to prevent transverse displacement of the bridge, although this is not ordinarily necessary.

Since the platform 23 must rest on the abutments 28 when in lowered position, I prefer to provide a sliding reciprocating type of coupling between the support members 22 and the platform 23. For example, as shown in Fig. 9, I

may secure to the under side of the platform 23 a flanged member 66 having a downwardly projecting hollow boss 87 supplied with internal splines 68 and disposed to receive the splined upper end of a support member 22. Thus, when the platform 23 is being raised, the upper end of the member 22 will extend through the boss 61 into contact with the underside of the platform 23, but as the platform 23 is lowered into engagement with the abutments 28, the support members 22 may be partially withdrawn and continue their downward movement without damage to the mechanism even after the platform has engaged the abutments.

Fig. 10 illustrates a somewhat similar coupling, which includes a flange member $9 having studs H secured thereto and projecting upwardly through the lower web of the platform 23. The upper ends of the studs H are provided with nuts 12 and washers 13 to confine springs 14 between the washers i5 and the platform. The member 69 is provided with a downwardly projecting hollow boss '16, into which the upper end of the support member 22 extends, and to which it is secured as by welding. As the platform engages the abutments 28 in its downward movement, the motor may overrun, thus continuing the downward movement of the support members 22 after the platform has come to rest, without damage to the operating mechanism, since this movement merely compresses the springs 14.

The pit i9 is of suitable configuration to receive the operating mechanism illustrated in Fig. 10 which includes a reversible electric motor 34 having an output shaft 3"! provided with a brake drum 30 upon which a suitable springactuated, solenoid-released brake 39 operates. The shaft 3'! is coupled to a worm 35 rotatably supported in a worm gear box 38 and engages a worm gear 40. Laterally extending shafts 4| are driven by the worm gear 40 through couplings 42, and extend laterally into driving connection with pinions 43 rotatably supported by bearings 44 in gear boxes generally designated 45. A gear box 46 is required for each of the two support members 22 disposed laterally from the worm gear box 38.

Each of the gear boxes 46 includes a housing 4'! through which the threaded support members 22 extend and are therefore disposed over the holes 33 in the pit i9. Formed integrally with the housing 41 is a hollow upwardly extending flange 4B counter-bored to receive a thrust bearing 49 which Supports a nut 5! having internal threads engaging the support member 22.- A- ring gear 52 is secured as by screws 53 to the nut 5| and meshes with the pinion 43, the ring gear 52 being above the pinion. A cover 54 having a suitable aperture formed therein for the support member 22 is secured to the top of the housing 41 and incorporates a lubricant opening, ordinarily closed by a filler plug 56. A drain plug 51 is provided in the housing 41 to permit change of lubricant when necessary. Lubricant should be maintained in the housing at a level somewhat above the lower periphery of the pinion 43, since in operation the pinion 43 carries sufficient lubricant upwardly to thoroughly lubricate the moving parts within the housing 41.

The gear boxes 46 also include a second pinion 58 rotatably supported in the housing 4'! and meshing with the ring gear 52. The pinions 58 drive shafts 59 which extend transversely to the shafts 4i and are coupled to pinions 66 disposed mbersi ar misrea -lowered at.identioa.1.v rat here ore. em

proper nitchoz. v :E-Awithr t: toi he an le; of: the. threa .1 s he W rm sear-- 5:;and:14.0 r sre tir r; since.

in erpre the; output shaitiflz-from wei ht: :2

d: nztheisupportmembers 2; herefore while. it; s not, essent l. that. either the-; hr a s on: the: support: member.- Q th worm. gearin in, he bQ i 85 e. fully; irreycltsibla. the. Combination ithe two; s ould-1 eiyethis effect; and; thuspr a vide an additional safety precaution insuringaea nst; unintentional movement of: th platform A' Y JIorse stress...

lllf fi i 1 One-Dime; Qfa'I': boxesfl. is, a limit' W 91 5.1,. -hi h functions, to. disconnect-1- the n .9 3.4 f om, a uitable s urce ofp w r wh n ctuatedbw & p un er 62s adjustably secured to one of theosupportmombersz22; A second'or up: p r lim t: switch: 6:31:- may b mounted on. the 15 ide:- of one. of: the: decks l0- and disposed o; en a; uitably disposed cam; surface 64: on. theaplatformyzfi;forlim-iting.upward movement oftho platform. It will; be, understood: of course that; suitable provision; may I be made for adjust. ment; of; either; theposition, of the-switch or the positionoi thecam; 64;

. Todescribethe operationof myrdevice, it-may be assumed thatthe platformzfi is'flin raisedaposia tion at: deolglevel as shown in; Fig. 1, and that i5 desir d to: per it; the; passage of a. diesel locomotiyeoz; along therailway'track; I 61 Asuitq able switch (not shpwn); is; connected to the motornd; is actuated by a. Wo m n to en ize the? motor 34;, w \ich; turn: drives the output shaitii andth nn 15. inthee ar x s Mir-.46, th "draw-111 hefil ph rtgmfimbers22;downwarda s he motor s; ener ized, the brake 39.: is releasedby, its solenoid, connected; in series. with the mo or,- husp r A. itti s: operat on. Shortly before the platfprm: 23 contacts,v the abutments Z8 the plun er 62; engages the limit switch. kil and: disc nbec stbe: motor. 31 from its source-of power, but the, inertia ofgthevdev-ice issufiicient to. bring-the platform 23 downwardly into, secure n agement with the angle members 3:! onthe. abutment 28. Asthe platform 2.3 is stopped by the. abutments. 28, the motor 34 may continue to rotate without stressing the gearing to any ape preciable degree, due to the action of the cou-. plings. illustrated in Figs, 9 and 10.. These also insure that the platform 2 3;will be filf'mlyseated before the 1ocomo-tive 32isallowed-to pass.- Since the. platf rm. s firml enga di th ansl meme hers-3t on; the abutments 28., which arein turn rigid withthe piers Moll? is'obyiousthat thesup-q port members 22 are not required to carry the Weight of the locomotive 32;; and. fiurthermore, since theangle members 31 supportthe platform against lateral movement, that rail sections 26 willnot only align with the track Iii but; can, not be displaced by the tractiye effiort of the.l0como.-. tive.

When the lomomotiye 32 has passed, the WOI'kw man may again actuate the switch, to. raise the bridge 18;. h scauses.themotor r ve esQlenoid-i hu bring.- s o i h hcflwt 21; at

os he pla iorm. 2. 1 i he P3553155.

v de nereiai a netheinlatiormfi deck. level;-v n .1 r d es. he ar menan Ma eo. v, he pla 3|; bri es he it. flat grou d e l .e a d allows. he, assa e .13. and. mater a s across th acks b t een. e up ort mam: rsll;

The b ide-e i l notrimo e; rqmzraisedfinqs qb unde he vy loadeye i the ra 39 b incperatiya. si; hetorqua ene: o b he oad; can.v not be. ransmitted. t rou h intv t: rever blagear ne.system Un er ord na y" irc ane s; I e er. to; em:- ployth type Qts ru herc nb iore os i ed ichincorpqratesf hreade sz ub or nc her but; t ere a ei .oseswher n his Wipe ofs ructure snot via e- For exam e, t occasiona ly nec ss r o; mplo m brid e tructur in. oc tions; Whe e. he roun water level is only a short distance below the m flo r lev an a. r su t, water wi l e adua. y seep n the h e z n. wh h, t e s hportmeme 2178: 2.2: more. I such nstances ay. p o d a device he; y lus rat d in F 2- 5. n isrn d fied o m; f my invent on; I em y cables s cured; o the; four corner i he a form 23 to raise and lower the platform, Forthis purpose four heavy support members 71; are

- mounted on the desk It) and provided attheir upper ends with; sheaves is; over which cables 79 are trained; The support members H are preferably hollow thus enclosing the cable 13, which is secure ton e d t a rner: o he latform 2am asuita le acket 8L, t e racke 1. the cab xt n s. up l hr u h. hesurp rt memb rs: l ov r the shea es T n downward with n. he s pp rt; m er ii, to h ave .1 mou ted w hin a sh lo j formedbelow theleyel ofthe main floor i2 A reversible electric motor a. solenoid brak 86, anda-rworm ar: b x, 8. im lar to he o r 4, brake 39, and: worm gear box 38; previouslydescribedare mountedin the pit 53 below a cover plate (18. disposed at floor level. Laterally, extending shafts ;8 extend from the gear box 8 and drive cable. drums, 9.1: rotatably suppor-ted in bearings 52'.

If desired, separatev cables may. be used for each. of the four corners. 0f the platform 23;, or the opposite ends. ofa single cable may, be see curedtoopposite corners ofthe platform 23; but in either event, the cable 19 is led overand around the drums. 9 1- in such manner that the motor 2M is driven in one direction and cable t9 will be Wound around the drums @l. Limit switches. similar to those previously described may-beprovidedtocontrol operation ofv the mo.- tor 8 2.

A further modification of-- my bridge. is illustrated in my Fig. 16; which represents somewhat diagrammatically a platform 23 adapted to be raised and lowered by a single support member 22-. The. apparatus for driving the supportmember 232 may be somewhat similar to that previously described in connection with Figs. 1a 11, inclusive. The. upper end of the support member 22', however, is splined and engages a heavy collar 96; secured to the under side of the platform 23 at its. midpoint; Late-rally extende ing reinforcing members 9? project outwardly and upwardly from the collar 96 and are secured at their outer ends to the underside of the platform 23. The corners of the platform 23 should in this instance move vertically in angular uprights 93, which engage the corners of the platform 23 and prevent rotation. If desired, the members 93 may be substituted for the pillars H immediately adjacent the corners of the platform 23, and serve to contribute to the decks iii.

From the foregoing it may be seen that my bridge eliminates the danger and difficulty involved in the use of hand-operated portable bridges such as are sometimes put into and out of position across the bays, since it not only eliminates the need for handling a cumbersome weight, but is positive in its action and amply strong to support the necessary weight. Considerable time is also saved, particularly since my bridge may be operated rapidly and without danger to the operating mechanism and a passageway at ground floor level provided. Access to the mechanism for maintenance and repair is simplified, since removal of the plate of the cover 2! from the pit l9 exposes all of the mechanism.

It should be understood that the foregoing d tail description has been made solely for the purposes of illustration and is not to be interpreted as limiting the scope of my invention. I do not bind myself to the details herein described except insofar as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A crossover bridge having associated therewith a railway track supported on piers above floor level with an interruption therein including a pit having a bottom below fioor level and elevated decks above track level defining a track bay into which a railway vehicl may be moved, comprising a platform having flush-mounted rail sections thereon for alignment with the rail way tracks when in lowered position, thereby bridging the interruption in the tracks to permit passage of the railway vehicle and adapted to be raised to deck level for spanning the bay, a bridge member spanning the pit at floor level, a plurality of spaced generally vertical support members fixed to the platform and adapted for raising and lowering therewith, reversible power-operated mechanism for raising and lowering the support members, and stationary means for supporting the platform when in lowered position.

2. A crossover bridge having associated therewith a railway track supported on piers above floor level and having an interruption therein, a pit extending below fioor level in the interruption and decks above track level defining track bays into which a railway vehicle may be moved comprising a rectangular platform over the pit having flush-mounted rail sections thereon for alignment with the railway track when in lowered position, the width of the platform being sufiicient to span the bay when in raised position, a bridge member at substantially fioor level spanning the pit, a plurality of vertically movable support members engaging the platform and extending through the bridge member, poweroperated mechanism in the pit for raising the platform to deck level and for lowering the platform to track level, and stationary means for positively limiting downward movement of the platform.

3. A crossover bridge having associated therewith a railway track supported on piers above floor level and having an interruption therein, a pit extending below floor level in the interruption and decks above track level defining track bays into which a railway vehicle may be moved comprising a rectangular platform over the pit having flush-mounted rail sections thereon for alignment with the railway track when in lowered position, the width of the platform being suflicient to span the bay when in raised position, a cover at substantially ground floor level for the pit, threaded members fixed to the under side of the platform and extending through the pit cover into the pit, rotatable nuts supported in the pit for raising and lowering the threaded members, reversible electric power means in the pit for simultaneously rotating said nuts and thereby raising the platform to deck level and lowering the platform to track level, and a stationary support in the path of the platform for positively limiting the extent of vertical movement of the platform in one direction.

4. A crossover bridge having associated therewith a railway track sup-ported on piers above floor level and having an interruption therein, a pit extending below floor level in the interruption, and decks above track level defining track bays into which a railway vehicle may be moved, comprising a rectangular platform over the pit having flush-mounted rail sections thereon for alignment with the railway track when in lowered position, the width of the platform being sufficient to span the bay when in raised position, a cover at substantially ground floor level for the pit, threaded support members secured to the under side of the platform near the corners thereof and extending into the pit, said supports defining a passageway across the tracks at the interruption at ground level when the platform is raised to deck level, rotatable nuts supported in the pit and engaging the threaded supports, a reversible motor in the pit, and a worm and gear interconnecting the motor and said nuts.

5. A crossover bridge having associated therewith a railway track supported on piers above floor level and having an interruption therein, a pit extending below fioor level in the interruption and decks above track level defining track bays into which a railway vehicle may be moved, comprising a rectangular platform over the pit havlng flush-mounted rail sections thereon for alignment with the railway track when in lowered position, the width of the platform being sufficient to span the bay when in'raised position, a cover at substantially ground fioor for the pit, threaded support members secured to the under side of the platform near the corners thereof and extending into the pit, said supports defining a passageway across the tracks at the interruption at ground level when the platform is raised to deck level, rotatable nuts supported in the pit and engaging the threaded supports, a reversible motor in the pit, a worm and gear interconnecting the motor and said nuts, limit switch means connected with the motor for limiting upward movement of the platform, and abutments fixed to the track piers and projecting into the interruption for engagmg the under side of the platform when the platform is in lowered position.

6. A crossover bridge having associated therewith a railway track supported on piers above floor level and having an interruption therein, a pit extending below floor level in the interruption and decks above track level defining track bays Int 70 which a railway vehicle may be moved, comprising a rectangular platform over the pit havegs-saves:

ing flush mounted rair sectionsthereunder alie ment with the 'railway'track'when'in-low d sition, the=width f the platform "beingzsufficient to spa'n the bay when i'n raised positionga cover at substantially ground floor level for the pit, threaded suppo'rt' memberssecured to the under side 'of the platform n'ear 't'he "eorners thereof' and extending i'nt'o "the pit, isai'd supports defining :a passageway across thje tracks .at 'the interruption at ground level when the platform ie-raised :to decklevel,rotatable nuts supported in the pit and engaging the threaded supports, a reversible motor in the pit, a worm and -gear i-nt'ereenneeting the motor andsaid nuts, :and members fixed to the track piers and projecting into the interruption, "said, members beingfs'o disposed and farfanged as to engage the "sides and ilootto'm or the pIat'form "when in lowered "pas n whereby vertica1 and'rateral disp1ac'ement"'of"the platform is prevented.

'7. A eross'o'verbridgehavin'g"associatedwherewith a railway 'trackf supported"on piers above fioor'level and having an interruption therein, a pit extending'iblow floorlevel in the interruption, and decks above track level defining track bays into which a railway vehicle may be moved, comprising a rectangular platform over the pit hav-- ing flush-mounted rail sections thereon for alignment with the railway track when in lowered position, the width of the platform being sufiicient to span the bay when in raised position, a cover at substantially ground fioor level for the pit, threaded support members secured to the under side of the platform near the corners thereof and extending into the pit, said supports defining a passageway across the tracks at the interruption at ground level when the platform is raised to deck level, rotatable nuts supported in the pit and engaging the threaded supports, a reversible motor in the pit, a worm and gear interconnecting the motor and said nuts, stationary means for limiting vertical movement of the platform in one direction, said nuts and worm and gear constituting a system incapable of transmitting torque from the support members.

8. A crossover bridge having associated therewith a railway track supported on piers above floor level and having an interruption therein, a pit extending below floor level in the interruption and decks above track level defining track bays into which a railway vehicle may be moved and comprising a platform over the pit having flush-mounted rail sections thereon for alignment with the railway track when in lowered position, the width of the platform being sufficient to span the bay when in raised position, a bridge member at substantially ground floor level covering the pit, a plurality of vertically movable support members engaging the platform and extending through the bridge member, reversible poweroperated mechanism in the pit for raising the platform to deck level and for lowering the platform to track level, and means movable with the platform for terminating operation of the poweroperated mechanism when the platform reaches a predetermined position.

9. A crossover bridge having associated therewith a building structure including a railway track supported above a floor and having an interruption therein including a pit having a bottom below floor level and elevated decks supported above track level defining a track bay into which a railway vehicle may be moved along the track comprising a bridge member spanning the pit at floor level, a platform above said bridge member having iii-ush -mounted trail sections thereon "for alignment with'lthezrailwaytracks whenlthe platfor m is :in lowered position thereby bridging the interruption :in the trabks tolpermitpassage of the railway vehicle and adapted to be raised to deck level for spanning .the bay andpermittin'g communication between" the vdeeks, a plurality of spaced, rgenerallyvertical support members en gaging the platform :and adapted for vertical movement therewith,ipower operated mechanism for Fraisin'g :and flowering the support members, andirigid means idi'spose'd'in thexpath of the platformi'and adapted to engage the building :struc tureand'the'platform whensaid.platformrea'ches asp-redeterminediposition.

"1'9. Avcrossoverubridge having-associatedthere'- with a railwayvtrack supp'ortedi above a floor with an interruption in the ztrac'kzincludinga .pit hav i-ng abottom below floorrl'evel and :elevated 'decks above t-h'e ifloo'r :and track rdefining Ia track =bay into whichara-ilwaynvehicleamay ib'ermoved comprising a bridge member spanning the pit, a rigi'd platform'aboveithe bridge-'membenhaving flushmeuntedirailseetionsthereon'foralignment"with therailway track when theiplatformz is in lowered position .-thereby;permitting Lpassa'ge eta-railway vehicle, means including a vertical support member coupled to the platform and an electric motor coupled to the support member for raising the platform vertically to elevated position spanning the bay and a rigid member permanently disposed in the path of the platform for positively limiting downward movement of the platform.

11. A crossover bridge structure having associated therewith a railway track supported above floor level with an interruption therein permitting passage along fioor level through the interruption and elevated decks above track level defining track bays into which a railway vehicle may be moved along said tracks and comprising a bridge member spanning the interruption at floor level, a platform above the bridge member movable vertically in and above the interruption and having flush-mounted rail sections thereon for alignment with the railway track when the platform is in lowered position, a plurality of vertically movable support members secured to the platform, and motor means coupled to the support members for moving the platform vertically, said platform in raised position being adapted to span the bay permitting communication between the decks and along the floor through the interruption and in lowered position to span the interruption in the track for permitting passage of a railway vehicle along said track and rail sections.

12. A crossover bridge having associated therewith a railway track supported above floor level and having an interruption formed therein, a pit extending below floor level in the interruption and decks above the track level defining track bays into which a railway vehicle may be moved comprising a platform over the pit having flushmounted rail sections for alignment with the railway track when in lowered position, the width of the platform being sufiicient to span the bay when the platform is in raised position, a cover at substantially ground floor level for the pit, an upright support member engaging the platform and extending through the pit cover, reversible power-operated mechanism in the pit for raising the upright member and platform to deck level and for lowering the platform to track level, and

stationary means for positively limiting downward movement of the platform.

13. A crossover bridge having associated therewith a building structure including a railway track supported above a floor and having an interruption formed in said track, a pit extending below floor level in the interruption and decks above track level defining track bays into which a railway vehicle may be moved comprising a platform over the pit having flush-mounted rail sections thereon for alignment with the railway track when in lowered position, the width of the platform being sufiicient to span the bay when the platform is in raised position, a cover at substantially floor level for the pit, a reversible power-driven cable drum, a plurality of fixed rotatable sheaves, cable means secured to the platform and the cable drum and extending over the sheaves for raising the platform to deck level and for lowering the platform to track level, and a stationary member fixed with respect to the building structure and in the path of the platform for limiting downward movement of the platform.

14. Apparatus for use with a structure having a floor and decks supported above the floor, said decks defining a bay, piers in the bay defining an interruption and rails on the piers, comprising a 12 bridge member at floor level extending across the interruption, a platform in the interruption above the bridge member having flush mounted rail sections thereon for alignment with rails on the piers when in lowered position, stationary means above the floor level supporting the platform when in lowered position, and means for moving the platform vertically to a raised position at deck level, the width of said platform being sufficient to span the bay.

ASA W. SKINNER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 342,757 Morrison May 25, 1886 613,851 Bryan Nov. 8, 1898 1,058,251 Moller Apr. 8, 1913 1,432,997 Graham Oct. 24, 1922 1,740,937 Zoller et al Dec. 24, 1929 OTHER REFERENCES Locomotive Cyclopedia, 13th edition, 1947, age 1155. 

